LAUSR

ABSTRACT To investigate the effect of Spent Mushroom Compost (SMC) as an organic fertilizer on German chamomile (Matricaria recutita L.) nutrient, growth, yield, essential oil and osmolytes a greenhouse experiment was conducted through a randomized complete design in six replications. A mixture of sandy loam soil with 5, 10 and 15% volume rates of spent mushroom compost was used as the partial substrate for German chamomile pot culture. Finding of results revealed that usage of SMC in the growing media increased significantly plant growth, flower yield, essential macro nutrient uptake, sodium concentration, proline and soluble sugars content as well as essential oil percentages in compared to control. Comparison between the treatments indicated that addition of 10% SMC to the plant soil substrate cause to higher growth and addition of higher rates of SMC (10% and 15%) led to better yield. The obtained results showed that absorption of K and Na enhanced significantly by increasing of SMC percentage in growing media but there was no significant difference in N and P uptake in SMC treatments. The results of GC and GC-MS analysis presented that the main compositions of essential oil extracted from German chamomile flowers accounted for 83.99–99.84% of total essential oil in SMC treatments. Regarding important role of SMC on the essential oil yield, we can consider SMC could be a suitable substitute for chemical fertilizers as environmentally friendly material in cultivation medicinal plant German chamomile.